The Official Newspaper for Foster County
The Official Newspaper for Foster County
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Welcome to 2025! It is the time of year that we often hear the saying, “New year, new me.” Everyone is setting New Year’s resolutions. Now is a great time for gardeners to reflect on the past growing season and set their resolutions for this year’s growing season. First, if you keep a garden journal or make notes about your garden then review the notes, as that will be a great starting place for setting goals. If you are like me and don’t keep notes, think back to your garden and what worked, w...
I remember my high school horticulture class studying houseplants. My teacher had about 20 different plants for the class to learn about and be able to identify. The first day that the plants were set up, my eyes immediately gravitated toward the "rainbow" plant. I was intrigued with all the colors on a single plant. My teacher held up each plant and wrote each name on the board. Now this colorful plant was no longer the rainbow plant, but a croton. Crotons (pronounced krow-tn) are popular,...
It's October and the spooky season is upon us. Yards are decorated, kids are figuring out their costumes and it's all things pumpkin. Pumpkin spice is in full swing. Here in Bismarck, Papa's Pumpkin Patch is already halfway through its season and pumpkins are getting many makeovers in homes. As I drive around the Bismarck area, it dawned on me that the spotlight shouldn't just be on the pumpkins. In the background of many porches and around the mailboxes are gourds! Though we focus on pumpkins...
As a gardener, many of us browse through catalogs and websites of local greenhouses. It is a source of inspiration and a great way to try something new to grow. I love succulents! I especially love having them in my office because they're low maintenance. They work well in my office as I'm quite busy and can forget about them, but they will continue to thrive. I recently discovered lithops, or living stones, through a local greenhouse's Facebook page. I was completely intrigued looking at the...
Last week was a great reminder of the unpredictability of our weather in North Dakota. Many of us were hoping for a snow-free Halloween for trick-or-treating and not having to break out the winter gear to collect as many sugary treats as possible. I currently have sad-looking, snowed-covered pumpkins on the porch. Gardeners were blessed with an extended growing season and now is a great time to reflect upon it. I wrote a column in the beginning of the year about New Year's resolutions and...
We are in full swing of harvesting in our gardens. Although our growing season got off to a slow start, most gardens in the Dakotas are producing an abundance of tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers and other produce now. This is a great opportunity to express our love with our family and friends by sharing our bountiful harvest. It feels wonderful to share, but there is only so much produce that family and friends are willing to take off your hands. We all know the running joke of leaving zucchinis...
I love going to greenhouses and seeing the colorful flowers for sale. With all the varieties available, I struggle with deciding which plants will come home with me. I like to grab different flower packs and hold them up together to see which ones will complement each other. Although the choices at a greenhouse seem endless, there is one flower that is always guaranteed a spot in my shopping cart: moss rose. It's bright, easy to grow and thrives here in the Dakotas. My love for moss roses...
